Shannan C. first worked with CarDomain at the Memphis stop of the DUB tour. The show went great, and she was such a blast to have in the booth that we decided to feature her in our spots for the August edition of Import Tuner. But when we first started working with her, we didn't have a clue what a huge car nut she was! Most of the time when models complain, it's about being cold, or their uncomfortable shoes. How frequently do they grumble that their MazdaSpeed Protege is too slow, or how it hits boost–cut when you tweak the turbo pressure? In this editor's opinion, not often enough.
In addition to the Protege, Shannan also owns a WRX STI. Both are fine rides, but apparently she thought they felt a little too much like, well, street cars. She certainly won't have that problem with her latest acquisition—a bright orange 2005 Lotus Elise. In this car, there's no carpeting, no leather, no attempt to disguise the aluminum tub. The designers across the pond at Lotus only grudgingly added a radio and air conditioning for the American market. They were concerned these "amenities" would add too much weight.
Shannan found the Lotus easily enough. The catch? It was five states away, in New York! Faced with this problem, she did what any true car–lover would—she flew to NYC and flogged the little racer on an 1100 mile, eighteen–hour dive down to Tennessee. She talked with CarDomain about that drive, modeling and how being short can make things complicated.
CarDomain: What's your day job?
Shannan C: I do accounting, bookkeeping and payroll. Stuff like that.
CD: Sounds pretty exciting.
SC: Oh yeah, it's a blast.
CD: How long have you been modeling?
SC: Not that long, for about two years. I love it!
CD: What was your first gig?
SC: It was a calendar for Memphis MotorSports Park. They host a lot a of NASCAR and drag events. It was a standard "girls in bikinis with hot cars" shoot.
CD: What's your favorite thing about going to car shows?
SC: Meeting and talking to people, and of course, all the cool cars!
CD: Who taught you to drive?
SC: My mom taught me to drive automatic when I was sixteen, and later my boyfriend taught me to drive stick. Now I won't even touch an automatic!
CD: What's the most inconvenient breakdown you've had?
SC: Well, I've been fortunate enough to not have a car break down on me, but a few years back, I got my Cavalier—it had eighteens—stuck in the mud. It was on a street which was under construction, and I didn't have my phone on me, so I had to flag down a random person in a truck to pull me out.
CD: I take it nothing like that happened on the way home in the Lotus.
SC: No, it was a great drive. The only thing is I'm kind of short, and with the seats sitting so low I couldn't see over the dash.
CD: How do you drive when you can't see over the dash?
SC: I made the drive home sitting on a phone book with a pillow on top. It took about eighteen hours, and surprisingly, it wasn't that uncomfortable.
CD: I take it you've gotten that fixed since then?
SC: Oh yeah. I had some special brackets made to raise the seat, so now the car fits me perfectly.
CD: So why did you pick up the Lotus in New York?
SC: Well, I like people to see me coming, so I wanted the Lotus in orange. The local dealer could have gotten that color, but I would've had to wait a while and pay twenty grand more. So I called around and found one exactly like I wanted in New York. Picking it up there and driving home was a no–brainer.
CD: Was the car brand new? Did you follow any of the break–in advice?
SC: It would have been torture trying to break it in on the way home, so fortunately it had a few miles on it, and the engine was already broken in. I just went for it!
CD: How fast did you get up to?
SC: Not that fast, about a hundred and twenty.
CD: What was the handling like at that speed? Did it get squirrelly?
SC: No, not at all. It's weird, because the harder I pushed it, the better the handling seemed to get.
CD: I can see from the photos that you installed a sub? How does it sound?
SC: It really booms. There isn't much room inside the car, and we had to get kind of creative with the placement, so we just pulled out the passenger side footrest and installed it there. It's pretty much out of reach of anyone's feet, and that seat doesn't adjust at all, so it's not like somebody is going to scoot up and push through it.
CD: What's your favorite thing about the Lotus?
SC: There are so many things about it that I love, but if I had to name just one, it'd be the way it handles. It's really incredible.
CD: Thanks for talking with us Shannan, and have fun with the new ride.
SC: I will, don't worry!
Check out Shannan's ride page here.
Link: http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2342893
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